Children

Children are a vital part of our congregation at Batavia Covenant Church

We believe that children who are connected with and feel valued and included by the whole church family are more likely to remain connected with a faith community as they get older. To that end, Covenant Kids Children’s Ministry seeks to partner with you in your children’s spiritual formation. From birth through 5th Grade, Covenant Kids is here to support and encourage you in your efforts to help your children come to know and follow Jesus. We want to celebrate your children’s milestones and encourage their personal relationship with Jesus. Additionally, we encourage their age appropriate participation in the main worship service and enjoy many intergenerational worship experiences over the year such as:

Preschool through 5th grade aged children are included in the congregation’s celebration of communion on the first Sunday of each month

Kindergarten through 5th grade aged children start off with you in the main worship service. They will participate in singing worship songs and in the welcome and greeting time. When it is time for them to go to their class, we pray with them and send them off.

On certain chosen dates we have intergenerational services in which all children Kindergarten through 5th grade will remain with you in the service. On these days we engage the children in the service in a variety of ways. This may include a special children’s message, a collaborative art project, art response journal pages, percussion instruments, coloring or activity pages and various other forms of engagement.

We offer the following classes during our 10:00 am Sunday worship service

Nursery - for infants from birth to age 2, our nursery volunteers help to establish your child’s first connection with the church family. We work to create a safe, caring and positive environment that will give you the peace of mind to relax and engage in the worship service. The nursery is also equipped with a quiet and discreet area for nursing mothers.

Preschool – In this age group, we continue to build and strengthen the positive relationships that our children have with the church.Using the Godly Play philosophy of biblical storytelling and creative response time, we seek to create space for children to be introduced, surrounded and engaged in God’s stories; we encourage the formation of skills necessary for children to begin to recognize the presence of God and to begin to engage with Him.

Kindergarten – 5th Grade- In this mixed age class, we continue to focus on spiritual development using the Godly Play methods. We engage the children in deeper and more complex stories and use wondering questions to give an opportunity for all ages to deeply interact with the stories. The children may choose to play with the storytelling materials, use art materials or engage in a more active response activity, all designed to give them time and space to meet with God, contemplate His truths and engage with his stories.

Friday Night Live

Friday Night Live (FNL) is a program that is offered to students in grades 3-5 as an introduction to our youth ministry programs. FNL gives students a taste of youth group while also providing a fun and age appropriate place to continue their spiritual growth. FNL meets from 7:00 - 8:30 pm on four different Friday nights throughout the school year (October 13th, December 1st, February 10th, April 7th). There will be snacks, games, songs, and a lesson; all planned and led by Dan Raymond, and the team of Student Leaders that have applied and been selected to help lead this ministry. All students in this age range are invited to come have a great time and grow in their faith!